Vamana Purana — Battle at Mandara, Shloka 20

The Battle at Mandara: Vinayaka, Nandin, and Skanda Rout the Daitya Hosts

Devanagari script

ते ऽभ्येत्य दानवबलं मर्दयन्ति स्म वेगिताः नानाशस्त्रधरा वीरा वृक्षानशनयो यथा

Transliteration

te 'bhyetya dānavabalaṃ mardayanti sma vegitāḥ nānāśastradharā vīrā vṛkṣānaśanayo yathā

Translation

S’élançant, ils se mirent à écraser l’armée des Dānavas : des héros rapides, portant des armes de toutes sortes, tels une puissance qui consume les arbres.

Speakers

• Narrator voice describing the clash: Śiva’s weapon-bearing heroes assault the Dānava army.

Primary Deities

• Shiva (implied through his forces)

Key Themes

• Battle imagery and simile
• Overwhelming force against Dānava host
• Weapon typology (nānā-śastra)

Verse Rasa (Emotional Flavour)

{ "primaryRasa": "raudra", "secondaryRasa": "vira", "rasaIntensity": 0, "emotionalArcPosition": "", "moodDescriptors": [] }

FAQs

Who are ‘they’ (te) in this verse?

By immediate continuity from the prior verse, ‘they’ refers to the mobilized Śaiva forces—gaṇas/Pāśupatas—who advance upon the Dānava army.

How should ‘vṛkṣānaśanayo yathā’ be understood?

It is a poetic simile for rapid, indiscriminate devastation—like a consuming agent that ‘eats’ trees. Purāṇic battle narration often uses such nature-based comparisons (fire, storms, swarms) to convey speed and totality of destruction.

Is there any hidden geographic reference here?

No. The verse uses natural imagery (trees) only as a metaphor; it does not identify a specific forest, river, or tīrtha.